As the years go by, video games constantly strive for higher levels of realism. The line between the real world and the video game world is starting to blur with the current level of technology in today's gaming hardware. The advancements in AI, heightened graphics, the ultimate switch to 3D, and the medium on which the data is carried are just some of the things that allow the video game industry to not just create games, but simulations.

To say that GTA3 has been critically well received is an understatement of gargantuan proportions. Since the short time of its release, the game is already being heralded not only as the game-of-the-year, but also a groundbreaking artistic masterpiece that qualifies for the ever-diminishing title of "greatest game of all-time."

People compare games and movies. Whether this is fair or not is moot by this point. People do it, and it doesn't look like theyre going to stop. The gaming public has decided to view games as an authorative medium in the tradition of cinema.

I often wonder when games will be reviewed on TV the way movies are featured on various evening news segments or television magazines such as Access Hollywood. If they were, Kojima's latest would yield mixed feelings. My sentiments about Metal Gear Solid 2 are similar to those when I anticipated some kind of Sixth Sense auteurism in Unbreakable, only to get something completely different.

Theres no denying that the game is often breathtaking to look at. Its rich and expansive environments are quite impressive and go a long way toward making the gaming experience an immersive one. Couple that with a battle system thats both simple enough so you can pick up the controller and begin playing immediately—but still deep enough that youll be working on perfecting combos hours after youve started—and youll see why this games generated the hype and early praise that it did.

Capcom is something of an enigma. Like so many of todays profit-driven developers, they shamelessly dilute the market with endless strings of sequels, spin-offs, and outright knock-offs. But occasionally, amidst the hordes of boring Resident Evil and Mega-Man sequels, something compelling emerges.

I completely agree with Brad's assessment of ICO as art—the game really is that beautiful. You'll have countless moments where you just have to stop and soak all of the scenery in. This sleeper hit of the year is simply too good to be missed.

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